Saturday, December 14, 2013

14 December 2008 - Toluca Slams The Apertura Shut

On 14 December 2008, Toluca held off Cruz Azul in a penalty shootout to win their ninth league title.

Cruz Azul, who were looking for their first title since 1997, had reached the Clausura final the previous May only to fall to Santos Laguna 3-2 on aggregate. Toluca, meanwhile, had not been to the final since December 2006 and last won it in December 2005.

The teams' two meetings in the regular season both ended in 1-1 draws, suggesting a competitive pair of matches when they reached the final of the post-season tournament. But in the first leg, hosted by Cruz Azul in Mexico City on 11 December, Toluca comfortably won 0-2 with first-half goals from Paulo da Silva (14') and Sergio Amaury Ponce (21').

They took that lead back to the Bombanera in Toluca, where they hosted the second leg three days later. There, Cruz Azul kept a clean sheet while getting goals from Alejandro Vela (49') and Julio Dominguez (77') to draw level on aggregate, forcing extra time, then a shootout.

Both teams were perfect through six kicks. Toluca's Edgar Dueñas then converted their seventh with a little bit of luck--his shot hit the crossbar and dropped in front of the goal, but hit the back of keeper Yosgart Gutiérrez and rebounded across the line. Vela, kicking for Cruz Azul, was not as lucky, as his low shot was saved by keeper Hernán Cristante to end the final at 2-2 (7-6) and put the trophy in Toluca's hands.